Fray
by AnathemasCurse
Summary: Oneshot songfic. Two lovers, bound to their respective duties, converse within the crimson glow of Shimabara.


Disclaimer: I do not own Peacemaker Kurogane or the song "Blurry" by Puddle of Mudd. Period.

Summary: Two lovers, bound to their respective duties, converse within the crimson glow of Shimabara.

Authors note: This story was written as a sort of filler while I continue "Reunions and Redemption". I had originally wanted to use the song "Broken", but I thought "Blurry" was closer to the kind of theme I was going for. Akesato and Yamanami have an interesting relationship, especially in the manga, and I wanted to take this chance to shed some light on their inner conflicts and such. I hope you enjoy, and I welcome constructive criticism.

**Fray**

_Everything's so blurry  
and everyone's so fake  
and everybody's empty_

Twin pools reflecting a summer sky, dead black suns at their centers, directed their gaze onto the emotional burden of their master.

_and everything is so messed up  
pre-occupied without you  
I cannot live at all_

Placing a hand on his cheek, she smiled. Slumber always took him into her soft open arms before the moon reached its place among the sea of stars.

_My whole world surrounds you  
I stumble then I crawl  
_

She almost jumped when a calloused hand joined hers, eclipsing its thin delicate frame completely, reassuringly.

_You could be my someone  
you could be my scene  
you know that i'll protect you_

Eyes foreign to the world she had come from, yet lovingly familiar to her, opened slowly. She couldn't help but cluck in good humor as he pulled away from her comforting presence.

_from all of the obscene  
I wonder what you're doing  
imagine where you are_

He grinned sheepishly, scratching the back of his head, unsure of what to say. Nights like these, when awkwardness fogged their senses, were few and far between.

_there's oceans in between us  
but that's not very far_

She knew the sadness hiding behind his lips all too well. It was a disease shared between them, contracted when they forgot their loyalties in the midst of their love.

_Can you take it all away  
can you take it all away  
well ya shoved it in my face_

He was staring at the moon, deep in thought. She placed her lips against the lobe of an ear.

"Wolves got your tongue tonight?"

He turned in her direction, his expression unreadable. She thought she saw a flash of guilt. The mask had been shattered.

_this pain you gave to me  
Can you take it all away  
_

A sigh escaped his weary form. Eyes now clouded by a storm of emotion closed to a night of doubt, worry.

"Why do you ask?"

He felt her mouth twitch against his skin. If it was a frown or smile, he couldn't tell. She pulled away, her beautiful face now expressionless in the glow of the lantern.

_can you take it all away  
well ya shoved it my face_

"Whenever you're like this, it's 'cause of something involving the Shinsengumi. Am I right?"

He smirked ruefully, eyes still closed, but less doubtful. They knew each other so well, it was almost pointless to voice any worries; auditory confirmation was an unneeded nuisance.

_Everyone is changing  
there's noone left that's real  
to make up your own ending_

"Mm. I suppose you are."

His openness…unnerved her. It was the man's duty to be strong; to put her in her place and keep his own through simple verbal reiteration of his strength and resilience. Not to allow her the benefit of the doubt.

_and let me know just how you feel  
cause I am lost without you_

"But then again, were you not conditioned to notice these sorts of things…?"

Her eyes widened considerably, and her hands seemed to gain a life of their own, fidgeting with the hem of her kimono. If he knew…

_I cannot live at all  
my whole world surrounds you  
I stumble then I crawl_

"I really can't say I know what you mean, Yamanami-sama."

His hand once more enveloped hers, the callousness of his skin, like the weapons he used, more obvious on the surface. He nipped at her pale neck affectionately, possessively almost. His lips brushed her bare collarbone, eliciting an almost invisible shiver.

_You could be my someone  
you could be my scene  
you know that i will save you_

"I'm surprised then. A…profession like yours requires some understanding of the male psyche, I would think."

_from all of the unclean  
I wonder what you're doing_

She allowed herself to relax in his rather unorthodox embrace, smirking to herself. Ivory fingers directed the wondering orifice to a mask equally as delicate and emotionless, save for a fleeting hint of lust and desperation. Of course, weren't they the same thing seen beneath the light of the moon in Shimabara?

_I wonder where you are  
There's oceans in between us  
but that's not very far_

"Running a tea house does require that, but it don't take a genius to know what men who visit the red light district want. Of course, wolves are always a different story. The blood on their fur has a scent even a night with one of us can't cover."

_Nobody told me what you thought  
nobody told me what to say  
everyone showed you where to turn_

He stopped his welcomed invasion to look into her eyes. They were distant, isolated. As he held her face with one hand, the other holding one of hers, he wondered if his own eyes were the same. Were they so different?

_told you when to runaway  
nobody told you where to hide_

She didn't wish to look at him. Her words, spoken in defense of her own duties, had bothered him. The truth of the statement troubled her. What difference was there between wolves and dogs, save for domestication?

_nobody told you what to say  
everyone showed you where to turn  
showed you when to runaway_

"Akesato-chan…you are right. And it is that scent which will always bring us together, even if only under the cover of night."

"Do you speak of regret, or blood?"

He paused before answering, his thumb running tracing delicate bones barely hidden under a sheet of pale silk. His other hand had found its way to a cup of sake forgotten early on. He took a small sip, hoping it would bring a conclusion to the night outside, heralding a new darkness within.

_This pain you gave to me  
You take it all  
You take it all away..._

"They are both strands woven in the rope that binds you and me. But there is love as well, for duty and for us."

_This pain you gave to me  
You take it all away_

She was still contemplating what he had just said when a tired snore reached ears sensitive to more than one would think. Placing a chaste kiss on his seldom unwrinkled forehead, she frowned at his words.

_This pain you gave to me_

_**How long will it be before that rope begins to fray?**_

_Take it all away  
This pain you gave to me_


End file.
